The UK definitely needs more overall housing capacity, and there is plenty of land which is not built on. Although I don't think this is the issue here, where t

The UK definitely needs more overall housing capacity, and there is plenty of land which is not built on. Although I don't think this is the issue here, where the area is already full of dense residential and commercial buildings. Subsidised housing in such areas is an effort to resist displacement and social change caused by gentrification. Permitting subletting of such housing turns the subsidy into no more than a monetary benefit, which fails to stop the unwanted demographic changes the government is aiming to prevent.